Low mortality and short‐term morbidity in very preterm infants in Austria 2011–2016

Aim The current study determined survival, short‐term neonatal morbidity and predictors for death or adverse outcome of very preterm infants in Austria. Methods This population‐based cohort study included 5197 very preterm infants (53.3% boys) born between 2011 and 2016 recruited from the Austrian Preterm Outcome Registry. Main outcome measures were gestational age‐related mortality and major short‐term morbidities. Results Overall, survival rate of all live‐born infants included was 91.6% and ranged from 47.1% and 73.4% among those born at 23 and 24 weeks of gestation to 84.9% and 88.2% among infants born at 25 and 26 weeks to more than 90.0% among those with a gestational age of 27 weeks or more. The overall prevalence of chronic lung disease, necrotising enterocolitis requiring surgery, intraventricular haemorrhage Grades 3–4, and retinopathy of prematurity Grades 3–5 was 10.0%, 2.1%, 5.5%, and 3.6%, respectively. Low gestational age, low birth weight, missing or incomplete course of antenatal steroids, male sex, and multiple births were significant risk predictors for death or adverse short‐term outcome. Conclusion In this national cohort study, overall survival rates were high and short‐term morbidity rate was low.